Former Chinese Politburo Member Ma Xingrui Faces Bribery Charges
Prosecutors accuse the expelled leader of accepting large bribes through roles in the space sector, Shenzhen, and Xinjiang.
By Ibrahim Howard ·
Ma Xingrui, a former member of the Chinese Politburo, has been formally charged with accepting bribes. State media reported the indictment on Thursday. This action follows a week in which Communist Party leaders confirmed his expulsion from the party.
Prosecutors in Yichang, located in Hubei province, allege that Ma used his leadership positions to secure benefits for others. They accuse him of accepting exceptionally large bribes and financial assets. Xinhua state news agency provided the details of the charges but did not specify the total amount of money involved.
Ma served in several high-ranking roles before his fall from power. He led China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation, a state-owned entity responsible for parts of the national space program. He also acted as party secretary for Shenzhen, a major technology center. Additionally, he served as the Communist Party chief for the Xinjiang region until 2025 and previously governed Guangdong province.
The investigation into Ma became public in April. Authorities announced that he was under scrutiny for severe violations of party discipline and national laws at that time. They did not provide specific details about the alleged misconduct during that initial announcement. His removal from the Politburo reduces the body’s membership from 24 to 21 members, as two military generals were also purged recently.
This case is part of a long-running anti-corruption campaign led by Xi Jinping. The campaign was reinforced during a closed-door meeting of the Central Committee’s fifth plenum last week. Leaders at that meeting adopted a resolution focused on strengthening discipline and combating corruption. They also ratified the expulsions of more than 30 senior officials, including Ma and the army’s top general who served until early this year.
Analysts describe the campaign as a method to enforce loyalty to Xi while rooting out corruption. Ma’s case involves multiple high-profile postings in the southern and western regions of China. He held the party leadership role in Xinjiang, which outranks the governor in the Chinese administrative system. He previously served as the governor of Guangdong, a manufacturing hub that borders Hong Kong.
